This invention relates generally to cooling of electronics enclosures using fan trays, and more particularly to quick-disconnect fan trays for a rack-mount electronics enclosure for field serviceable components.
During operation, electronic components generate heat. When tightly packed together in enclosures or located in high heat environments such as is encountered in rack-mounted electronic equipment, it is important to cool the electronics by removing the heat to prevent failure and to ensure proper operation. Air cooling is the dominant mode of removing heat in most applications. The high power dissipation in many types of electronic component enclosures, such as for semiconductor memory, for example, requires fans to provide adequate airflow to ensure proper thermal management within the enclosures. Frequently, multiple fans may be necessary to provide sufficient airflow, and the fans must be mounted within or closely adjacent to the exterior of the electronics enclosure to ensure adequate airflow over the electronics. Typically, the fans are arranged as fan trays.
Fans are subject to failure due to wear of mechanical parts such as bearings or the accumulation of dust, and failed fans must be replaced reasonably promptly to prevent damage to the electronics. If the fans are built into the electronic enclosures, an enclosure must be physically disassembled to remove and replace a failed fan. If the enclosure is rack mounted, this may necessitate physically removing the enclosure from the rack, which may require disconnecting multiple cables from the enclosure and powering down the electronics. This may also be the case to service or replace a failed electronics module within the enclosure. Even if the electronics modules are hot-swappable, disassembly of the enclosure to remove a fan may still be necessary to obtain access to the electronics module. In applications where equipment must be powered up and functional continuously, such as in data processing applications, taking equipment off-line for maintenance or replacement of components is disruptive and undesirable.
It is desirable to provide quick-disconnect fan tray modules for forced air cooling of electronic components where the fan tray modules can be easily removed and replaced to afford access to the electronic components for service without the necessity of disassembly of an enclosure. Moreover, it is also desirable to provide universal translatable fan trays that can be used in any position with an enclosure. It is to these ends at the present invention is directed.